The present invention relates to an improved roller for tracks.
It is known that in tracked vehicles the tracks are constituted by articulated links which wind around driving sprocket wheels and smooth driven tensioning wheels and rest on a plurality of free rollers which in practice bear the weight of the vehicle.
The rollers are turned by friction with the links of the tracks, and therefore they are subject to wear, which is worsened by the particular harsh operating conditions, such as soil which, by penetrating between the sliding surfaces of the rollers and of the tracks, has a high abrasive power.
This wear accordingly makes it necessary to replace the sliding surfaces of the rollers.
In order to allow easier and faster replacement of the sliding surfaces (hereinafter termed xe2x80x9cshellxe2x80x9d for the sake of convenience in description), conventional rollers have a structure which allows disassembly.
However, such structure is very complex, since it is composed of a considerable number of parts whose assembly and disassembly require time and the use of special tools.
The aim of the present invention is to obviate the drawbacks of conventional rollers, by providing a roller which is constructively simpler and requires simpler and faster operations for assembly and disassembly.
This aim is achieved with a sliding roller for the tracks of tracked vehicles, which comprises a supporting shaft which is composed of two coaxial portions and a central collar, supporting bushings which are arranged on said coaxial portions on either side of said collar, a cylindrical shell which forms sliding surfaces for the links of tracks, said shell enclosing a cavity for accommodating said bushings and said shaft, said cavity being closed at opposite ends thereof by sealing devices which are arranged between said bushings and closure covers which are arranged at the opposite ends of said shaft, characterized in that said collar and at least one of said bushings are locked in said cavity between an inner shoulder of said cavity and means for the axial retention of said bush which are rigidly coupled to said cylindrical shell.